Seeking Alpha’s roundup of statements, announcements, and remarks that could impact markets, sectors, or individual stocks.
- Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said the Trump administration would be able to reinstate its trade strategy under the 1962 Trade Act if the Supreme Court rules it overstepped its bounds by implementing tariffs under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act.
“We can recreate the exact tariff structure with [sections] 301, with 232, with 122,” Bessent said during an interview with CNBC’s Andrew Ross Sorkin at the New York Times DealBook Summit, according to CNBC.
CNBC noted that Section 122 allows for tariffs to be imposed for 150 days, while Sections 301 and 232 are more vague in terms of timeframe.
- Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth reiterated that he is against the Navy’s plans to build a next-generation F/A-XX fighter jet over concerns that its development will overlap with that of a next-generation aircraft for the Air Force, the F-47, that’s been greenlighted by President Trump.
In a letter to lawmakers last month, Hegseth said that the Pentagon “strongly supports its original fiscal 2026 request reevaluating the F/A-XX program due to industrial base concerns of two sixth-generation programs occurring simultaneously,” according to Bloomberg.
Northrop Grumman (NOC) and Boeing (BA) have been competing for the F/A-XX contract. The new aircraft would replace the Boeing F/A-18 Super Hornet, Bloomberg said.
Bloomberg noted that the U.S. Senate Armed Services Committee has been supportive of the F/A-XX program, adding $500 million in research funding for the program in this year’s defense bill.
- Meanwhile, U.S. Sen. Mitch McConnell reiterated his support for the F/A-XX program in an opinion piece published by The Wall Street Journal on Wednesday that argued for increased investment in the nation’s military.
“The president announced his selection of a sixth-generation fighter aircraft for the Air Force, the F-47, but this program is underfunded in 2026 by $500 million. Pentagon dithering over the Navy’s sixth-generation fighter, the F/A-XX, has delayed its development and led to hundreds of millions in contract-extension costs,” McConnell wrote in his op-ed.
“If the department made a decision, Mr. Trump could launch a program that ensures the aircraft carrier remains America’s premier power-projection platform for decades,” McConnell added.